The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) has announced that this year’s Vintage Motorcycle Days rally will highlight the classic "Rockers and Mods" two-wheeled subculture that is presently undergoing a resurgence in the U.S.
AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days, set for July 20-22 at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio, will shine a spotlight on British café-racer motorcycles and Italian metal-bodied scooters made popular by the self-described Rockers and Mods of the early 1960s.
"If you’ve ever seen the TV show Café Racers, or watched the movie Quadrophenia, you know the amazing impact the British Mods and Rockers had on motorcycle culture," said Grant Parsons, AMA director of marketing and communications. "At this year’s AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days, it’s not just about the custom café racers and blinged-out Lambrettas and Vespas, but also the crazy and wonderful people who are bringing these icons back to life 40 to 50 years later, an entire ocean away from where the craze got its start."
High-profile characters in one of motorcycling’s most colorful bits of history, Rockers sported pompadours, wore leather jackets festooned with pins, and rode Triumph, Norton, BSA and other Brit-bikes chopped into café racers. The Rockers stood in stark contrast to the Mods of the same era – dapper-dressed riders who prized the glorious cosmetic and performance enhancements of Italian metal-body scooters like Vespas and Lambrettas. For a Mod, the more shiny-chrome rear-view mirrors mounted on the front legshields, the better.
Both groups – and their machines – will be honored as "Marque of the Year." The Rockers and Mods showcase at Mid-Ohio will be most evident in bike and scooter shows focused on the two groups, and in a special tent devoted to the Mods and Rockers, with machines, memorabilia, history displays and live interviews and entertainment throughout the three day event.
"We’re confident this edition of AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days will be even a bigger success than the events in years past," said Craig Rust, president of Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. "The focus on Mods and Rockers will bring a ton of interest and fans to the facility, and we’re thrilled to transform our grounds into a motorcycle mecca for three days this summer."
For more information about AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days, visit www.amavintagemotorcycledays.com.
